"I don’t know how many players would say they’re in good form for us at the moment."

Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell didn't mince his words on Saturday night. He was scathing post-game after his side was embarrassed by Gold Coast at People First Stadium. And he had every right to be filthy. 

This was the year the Hawks were expected to start making progress after two years of development under Mitchell. But midway through April, the rebuild project at Waverley Park has stagnated. 

At 0-5, Hawthorn has made its worst start to a season since 1970.

A week after almost pulling off one of the upsets of the season against Collingwood – and a fortnight after a gallant performance on Easter Monday – Hawthorn returned from Queensland on Sunday wondering 'where to from here' after Damien Hardwick's midfield destroyed the Hawks. 

"That's a completely unacceptable way to play. That's as bad as we've played in a long time," Mitchell lamented after the 53-point loss.

Noah Anderson, Touk Miller and Matt Rowell are one of the premier midfield trios in the League right now and will terrorise plenty of sides in 2024, but even they would have been surprised by how easy they had it on Saturday night. 

James Worpel has been great to start the year, but he was down against the Suns, finishing with just 14 disposals. Jai Newcombe and Conor Nash only had 10 touches each and two clearances between them. Cam Mackenzie was subbed out at half-time after collecting just three disposals. 

The numbers are stark. Gold Coast finished with 96 more disposals – Hawthorn only had 119 at half-time – 93 more uncontested possessions, 47 more uncontested marks, 20 more inside 50s, 15 more tackles and 10 more clearances. 

Suns Academy graduate Will Graham laid 14 tackles in just his second game. No Hawk had more than four. Hawthorn is yet to win this metric across the first five rounds.

"We had a chat with the players (post-match) around the standard that we hold ourselves to. Our training, how much extras we do, how much time we're putting in, how much tape we're watching," Mitchell said.

"I think we're probably going to have to ramp a few things up during the week and if we lose one (player) to a corkie or something like that, then we probably have to accept that. We can't play with the physicality we did tonight and expect to be competitive."

The absence of reigning Peter Crimmins medallist Will Day has left a gaping hole, but the midfield has been well down to start the year after this area of the ground made significant inroads last year.

The Hawks have been outscored by 20 points per game from stoppage this season to be ranked dead last in the competition, nearly twice as bad as North Melbourne (-11.4 points) which is ranked No. 17. 

Last year, Newcombe went from being a niche mid-season recruit to a legitimate star, filling the void left by departed stars Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O’Meara and endorsing that element of the rebuild. He finished second in the best and fairest for the second consecutive season, as well as earning selection in the 44-man All-Australian squad after polling 18 Brownlow Medal votes. This year, the inside bull has been patchy, dropping in output across the first five rounds. 

Nash entered his free agency season on the back of a career-best year, where the rugby union convert emerged as the best Irishman in the game after finishing third in the best and fairest, following a campaign where he went head-to-head with many of the best midfielders in the caper. But despite still getting his hands dirty, the Meath product has been down. 

After being selected at pick No. 7 in consecutive years, Josh Ward and Cam Mackenzie were expected to be the silver lining in the absence of Day, but the young midfield pair haven’t grasped their opportunity. Both had great summers, but that form hasn’t quite translated into the time of year that matters most yet, although Mackenzie has had decent games.

Henry Hustwaite showed promise over the pre-season but has been subbed in or out of the past three games, after being overlooked in the first fortnight.  

Ned Reeves was one of the most promising young ruckmen in the League in 2023, but former Docker Lloyd Meek has grabbed that spot back in recent weeks after playing second fiddle, or at Box Hill, for most of his first season at the club. 

The Hawks are ranked No.18 in the AFL for clearances and centre clearances after round eight and will need to go to work this week after they were taught a lesson by Gold Coast. 

After leading Hawthorn to eight wins in his first season at the helm and seven last year, Mitchell has been dealt a tough hand this year, losing three of his most important players – Day, Changkuoth Jiath and James Blanck – during the pre-season. 

But every club has injuries. Look at Richmond, Carlton and Essendon right now. Hawthorn needs a response, starting on Sunday against North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium. The entire team has been put on notice. The forward line is down on personnel and not firing. But games are won and lost in the middle. 

Hawthorn has preached patience during this rebuild. That patience is starting to wear thin.